no artsy shit. vocals must be awesomely evil (i like the "roaring" kind of BM vox), not screechy/creepy/phlegmy/disgusting. and yeah it has to fuckin SHRED!!
thanks for all the recs! i knew about Keep of Kalessin, they're great. Dark Fortress and Infernal War fuckin shredded my ass, just what i needed. all the others clicked too after some listens, i have a feeling they will grow on me.
if you guys think of any more, just post it. thanks
a. I referred to that album as essential, I didn't emphasize 'reissue'
b. the reissue includes the Rebellion EP, which is equally good, and there's no point in saying 'get this LP and this EP' when referring to the reissue covers that. Obviously someone who isn't new to Samael probably already has both, so of course the reissue isn't necessary, but someone new to them might well miss out on it in buying only the original release.